Swimming: Ferguson stakes claim for Games

Olympic breaststroker Steven Ferguson has given a stern reminder that he cannot be counted out of the reckoning for next year's Commonwealth Games in Manchester.

Ferguson, 21, who took some time out of the pool to concentrate on surf lifesaving last summer, grabbed his third title in style on the final night of the national winter championships in Rotorua on Saturday.

He again reacted best off the blocks and held off the top-qualifying Queenslanders Mark Riley and Brenton Rickard to win the 200m breaststroke in 2m 11.91s, only 0.25s off Paul Kent's New Zealand record.

It marked an outstanding week for the North Shore swimmer, who won all three breaststroke titles and finished third in the 50m freestyle.

His fellow Sydney Olympian, Liz van Welie, of Dunedin, bagged two wins on Saturday night.

Van Welie, 21, defended her 200m butterfly title, finishing 1s outside last year's winning time and 2s outside her New Zealand record.

She backed this up in the following event, coming from third place at the halfway mark to storm home to win the 100m individual medley.

The other New Zealand victory was a special occasion for Jane Copland and the small Hawkes Bay club of Erehwon when Copland won the 200m breaststroke.

The rest of the night belonged to the Queensland squad, with Shane Fielding winning the 200m butterfly and 100m individual medley, Belinda Nevell the 50m backstroke, Andrew Affleck the 1500m freestyle, and Raymond McDonald and Jodie Henry the 50m freestyle titles.

Australian swimmers from Queensland and Tasmania won 20 of the 36 finals.

Queenslanders Fielding and freestyler Katie Canning, together with Ferguson, were the most successful swimmers at the meet, with three victories each. Affleck, Helen Norfolk, Dean Kent, Glenn Anderson, Nicole Irving, Sarah Milton, Raymond McDonald, Daniel Blackborrow and van Welie won two each.

There were plenty of encouraging signs for New Zealand, with three national open records and a host of new age-group marks being set as the leading New Zealanders begin their final training cycle before the Commonwealth Games qualifying period begins in January.

- NZPA